Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine instrumental music lessons taught for schoolchildren over the radio by Joseph Maddy in the 1930s and early 1950s. Research questions addressed (a) conditions, circumstances, and details surrounding the lessons and (b) pedagogical principles, strategies, methods, and didactic materials utilized in these broadcasts. Maddy, a pioneer in music education and a professor at the University of Michigan, taught band instruments over WJR in Detroit beginning in February 1931. He added lessons for strings in January 1933 and continued both series for the next four years. After a successful trial over WMAQ in Chicago during the 1935–1936 school year, the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) scheduled Maddy’s band lessons nationwide starting with the 1936–1937 season. Maddy expanded the program beginning fall 1937 to include winds, percussion, orchestral strings, piano, accordion, and fretted instruments. The broadcasts ended in spring 1939 due to lackluster sales of instructional materials and other factors. String lessons returned in February 1950 and continued locally through the fall of 1951 over WUOM at the University of Michigan. These programs contributed to the development of school bands and orchestras in North America and hold implications for distance learning in music today.
The advent of commercial radio in the 1920s led to numerous programs intended to supplement education in K–12 classrooms. School systems in New York City (1923); Oakland, California (1924); Chicago, Illinois (1924); and Atlanta, Georgia (1926), experimented with providing instruction in various subjects via radio. 1 Several colleges and universities, with the support of state departments of education, organized “schools of the air,” including those in Ohio, Wisconsin, Texas, Oregon, and Minnesota. 2 The Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) sponsored “The American School of the Air” beginning in 1930, which aired nationwide Monday through Friday from 2:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Eastern time during the academic year. 3 Schools of the air typically provided instruction manuals and student workbooks to help teachers introduce lesson topics and keep children engaged during the broadcasts. Distribution of these materials also provided a means of estimating the number of participants in a particular program. 4
Music Instruction by Radio
Music appreciation courses were frequently offered though radio. The Music Appreciation Hour on the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) network reached schoolchildren throughout the United States and Canada from 1928 to 1942. Walter Damrosch, former conductor of the New York Symphony, presented lessons in four series targeted at different age groups. Each series consisted of twelve half-hour programs, which aired Fridays during the school day on a rotating basis. 5
A few radio programs offered music instruction for beginning instrumentalists. Edward Berry broadcast piano lessons over WGN in Chicago beginning in April 1926. By the following year, 3,000 students from as far away as Florida, Connecticut, and Saskatchewan, Canada, participated in the thirty-minute program. 6 Sigmund Spaeth and Osbourn McConathy taught piano lessons from stations in New York City from 1931 to 1932. Although not intended specifically for K–12 students, McConathy stated that, “The public schools . . . are beginning to work out plans to take advantage of these broadcasts, and already a number of piano classes have been organized in the public schools and during school hours.” 7
Joseph Maddy, a pioneer in music education and a professor at the University of Michigan, taught band and string instruments over the radio during the 1930s and the early 1950s for students in rural communities without an instructor. 8 These broadcasts supported the development of school bands and orchestras, which aligned with contemporary values articulated in the “Cardinal Principles of Secondary Education.” Published in 1918, this document stated that a progressive high school curriculum should develop students’ (1) health, (2) fundamental processes (the 3 Rs), (3) worthy home membership, (4) vocational skills, (5) citizenship, (6) worthy use of leisure time, and (7) ethical character. 9 Rationales for instrumental music ensembles during this period aligned with these general tenets. 10
Purpose and Rationale
The purpose of this study was to examine the instrumental music lessons taught on the radio by Joseph Maddy in the 1930s and early 1950s. The following questions guided this research: (1) What were the conditions, circumstances, and details surrounding the lessons? (2) What pedagogical principles, strategies, and methods did Maddy follow in teaching instrumental music by radio? and (3) What didactic materials did Maddy utilize to support radio instruction for students learning winds, strings, and percussion?
Teachers’ experiences during the recent COVID-19 pandemic have created a renewed interest in remote learning in music, as indicated by the amount of research and practitioner literature on this topic published in the past two years. 11 However, few historical studies exist on remote learning, especially as related to teaching instrumental music. 12 This study will add to the literature on the subject and perhaps recover pedagogical strategies and principles from teaching music by radio that are applicable to remote learning through the World Wide Web today.
Method
Methods for this study involved immersion and saturation. This process as applied to historical research entails collecting and examining as many sources as possible until the point at which no new information emerges. 13 I accessed primary and secondary sources through online archives and the Interlochen Center for the Arts records housed in the Bentley Historical Library at the University of Michigan. Primary sources included articles from periodicals and newspapers, correspondence and other documents, didactic materials, memoires, radio scripts, and broadcast recordings. I also utilized secondary sources consisting of dissertations, journal articles, and books to establish historical context and provide additional information. When possible, I consulted multiple sources to triangulate evidence and establish the historical record. 14
Joseph Maddy
Joseph Maddy was born in Wellington, Kansas, in 1891. He withdrew from high school at age fifteen and studied music at Bethany College and the Wichita College of Music. He played viola and clarinet in the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra from 1909 to 1914 and then worked as a professional musician, conductor, and applied teacher mostly in the Midwest United States. Maddy entered the field of music education in 1918 when he accepted a position as supervisor of instrumental music in the public schools of Rochester, New York. He moved to Richmond, Indiana, two years later, where he served as music supervisor of the local public schools and developed a high school orchestra program that earned national acclaim. 15
In 1924, Maddy accepted a dual appointment as head of music education at the University of Michigan (UofM) and as music supervisor in the Ann Arbor Public Schools. He left his half-time position as music supervisor in 1927 to focus on developing a music camp where talented youth could study during the summer. In June 1928, Maddy opened the National High School Orchestra Camp—eventually named the National Music Camp (NMC)—at Interlochen, Michigan. 16 That same year, UofM administrators secured a Carnegie Foundation Grant “for the development of fine arts in Michigan.” They used these funds to hire Maddy full-time to “promote music anywhere and everywhere without restrictions.” When the grant expired in 1933, the university created a position in the Extension Division that allowed him to focus on the camp and develop music instruction for the radio. 17 In addition to his work at the UofM and the NMC, Maddy held several positions in the Music Supervisors/Educators National Conference, including the office of president from 1936 to 1938. 18
Maddy led several innovations in music education. In 1923, he and his mentor, Thaddeus P. Giddings, a prominent music supervisor in Minneapolis, Minnesota, published The Universal Teacher (UT), the first heterogeneous class instruction method for band and string instruments. This text applied the song method, common in elementary vocal music at the time, to the instrumental classroom. Students learned to sing and read music based on the process by which children acquire language rather than through isolated scales and intervals. Students first learned a tune by rote and then discovered how notation related to sound by following the music as they sang. 19
Maddy also helped develop all-state ensembles, contests, and repertoire for school bands and orchestras and a National High School Orchestra that promoted instrumental music education throughout the country during the 1920s and 1930s. 20 He retired from the UofM in 1961 to focus on his work at the camp and the Interlochen Arts Academy, a boarding high school established on the campus of the NMC in 1962. He continued as president of these institutions until his death in 1966. 21
Maddy’s Radio Lessons
WJR-Detroit (1931–1937)
In October 1930, a superintendent of schools in a small Michigan community asked Maddy if it might be possible to provide instrumental instruction by radio for students in rural districts that could not afford to hire a band teacher. 22 Maddy proposed the idea to Waldo Abbott, director of broadcasting at the UofM. Although skeptical at first, Abbott granted Maddy permission to teach a series of five weekly, half-hour instrumental lessons on an experimental basis starting in February 1931. 23
Maddy prepared instructional materials consisting of illustrations, directions, and song material from the first few pages of UT. 24 He announced the program to school superintendents throughout the state and immediately received 3,800 requests for free instruction books. Although intended for students in grades four through twelve, sponsors also encouraged adult learners to participate in the broadcasts. 25
The first lesson aired on Monday, February 16, 1931, at 2:00 p.m. Eastern time over WJR in Detroit.
26
Because the UofM did not operate its own transmitter, all programs originated from Morris Hall on the Ann Arbor campus and were relayed via telephone wire to WJR for broadcast.
27
Following an enthusiastic welcome, Maddy reviewed playing position and sound production and then led students through the first two exercises in the book. Throughout the lesson, he helped students solve potential playing problems and reminded them to follow the written instructions for their instrument: Read the sentence starting with the words, “HOW TO TUNE YOUR INSTRUMENT.” Place your fingers as indicated in the directions. Sit erect. Lean forward slightly so your back does not touch the back of your chair. Place the instrument to your mouth like the picture. Compare your position carefully with that in the picture, for this is the most important thing for you to learn at first. You will learn more rapidly if you consult a mirror when practicing between lessons. The mirror will show you the correct playing position.
28
Approximately 3,000 students from Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Ontario, Canada, participated in the first season. 29
The original plan called for a series of five lessons. However, Maddy added two additional sessions on March 30 and April 6 in response to “the [large] number of letters and cards from members of [his] huge radio band class[,] . . . superintendents, high school principals and teachers . . . ask[ing] for a continuation of [the] course[.]” 30 For the final broadcast, he invited each class to send up to three members who had received instruction exclusively by radio to participate in Ann Arbor. Twenty children ranging from ten to sixteen years of age came to Morris Hall and replaced the university students who regularly served as the demonstration band. The special one-hour broadcast featured the group performing familiar and unfamiliar melodies in unison and multiple parts as well as individuals playing solos, duets, and trios. According to Maddy, “There was no longer any shadow of doubt as to the practicability of teaching band instruments by radio.” 31
The second series of band instrument lessons aired from February 15 to March 21, 1932, with broadcasts on Monday and Friday at 2:00 p.m. 32 The third series began the following October and included ten weekly lessons on Mondays. 33 An estimated 5,000 to 6,000 students participated in each series. 34
While visiting schools to assess the progress of his pupils, Maddy “was surprised to find in the majority of the classes’ students attempting to learn to play violin and other stringed instruments by the same lessons. In some classes, there were more violins than band instruments.” 35 Therefore, he added a series for strings that began January 9, 1933, immediately following the third season of band lessons. 36 Approximately 3,000 to 4,000 students learned violin, viola, cello, and string bass though these broadcasts. 37
From this point forward, Maddy taught the band and string courses on a regular basis during fall and spring semesters. Both programs resumed in October 1933, with lessons offered on Monday for strings at 9:15 a.m. and for band instruments at the usual time of 2:00 p.m. Maddy also taught a radio course in singing on Tuesdays at 9:15 a.m. 38 Each series, fall and spring, consisted of seven to ten lessons and reached students throughout the Midwest and into the southern United States and Canada. 39
Beginning in January 1935, Maddy divided each thirty-minute instrumental lesson of the spring semester between beginning and advanced players. This plan allowed classes to join midyear and provided review for experienced students. 40 Maddy celebrated the accomplishments of his pupils at Radio Class Music Festivals held at the UofM in Yost Field House on Saturday, April 28, 1934, and in Hill Auditorium on Saturday, May 25, 1935. Approximately 425 students attended in 1935 (see Appendix A, Figure S1 in the supplemental document included with the online version of this article). Students from schools throughout the region assembled for a one-hour concert featuring band, string, and vocal students performing pieces they had learned through radio instruction. The string, band, and singing classes performed separately and then presented “America” and several other songs together. 41
NBC Band Lessons (1935–1937)
Maddy began advocating for a national broadcast of his band lessons by NBC in early 1931. 42 However, three years passed before network executives were willing to consider adding the program to their schedule. From October 16, 1935, to March 11, 1936, Maddy taught on an experimental basis over NBC affiliate, WMAQ, in Chicago to determine if teaching band instruments by radio was feasible on a national scale. The series aired on Wednesdays at 11:30 a.m. Central time and included twenty lessons. 43 K–12 administrators in Chicago and throughout the Midwest provided beginning instrumental instruction for elementary and high school students with this program. 44 Maddy continued the Monday broadcasts on WJR in Detroit and repeated the lesson at the Chicago station two days later using the same basic script and instructional material. Students participating over WJR could tune in to WMAQ on Wednesday for review. 45
Radio band lessons over WMAQ were a success and prompted NBC to schedule the program on its Red Network. NBC controlled two networks designated as “Red” and “Blue.” The Red Network was larger and carried the most commercially profitable programs, while the Blue Network typically aired public service programs and served as a place to develop new shows before moving them to the Red Network, if successful. 46
The N. B. C. Radio Band Lessons continued to originate from Chicago and began on Tuesday, October 13, 1936, at 1:00 p.m. Central time. 47 As with previous lessons, the first fifteen minutes of each broadcast during the second semester catered to beginners and allowed new students to enroll. 48 The series included thirty sessions and aired over seventy-two stations in sixty-six cities throughout the United States and in Montreal and Toronto, Canada. 49
Fun in Music and Music Makers (1937–1939)
Maddy came to believe that “If music is music regardless of the medium, then music teaching should be music teaching, regardless of the instruments or voices.” He continued, asking, “Is it possible to ignore technique and teach just music; to include all necessary technical directions in the instruction material by means of pictures and printed text matter, so that one music lesson will provide the stimulus and guidance for a general musical awakening?” 50 These statements imply an evolution in Maddy’s thinking about the place and possibilities of radio in developing amateur musicianship in general rather than focusing only on establishing school bands and orchestras. In adherence to this philosophy, Maddy reformatted the NBC program for the 1937–1938 season to offer instruction for every common musical instrument capable of playing in more than one key, including orchestral strings, woodwinds, brass, piano, accordion, and several fretted instruments. 51
The broadcast and the instruction book—written by Maddy and Giddings—carried the title Fun in Music. The American Book Company sponsored the series and published the text. Maddy acknowledged his “scattered . . . attempt to cover too much territory in an effort to reach a larger audience” by teaching winds, strings, and other instruments at one time. 52 However, the goal of the program was to allow for music to “function in every home . . . [by making] . . . music learning so simple, so inexpensive and so attractive that everyone who is sufficiently interested to purchase a musical instrument . . . be able to learn to play . . . at least one song before he tires of the new acquisition.” 53 NBC estimated that 170,000 students representing every U.S. state and Canadian providence took advantage of these broadcasts. 54
The last season of the program aired in 1938–1939 under the title Music Makers on Tuesdays at 11:45 a.m. (fall) or 12:00 p.m. (spring) Central time. 55 The original plan involved transmitting the lessons from the UofM to WCFL in Chicago, thus eliminating travel for Maddy and freeing up commercially valuable airtime for WMAQ. 56 However, several challenges with acquiring necessary equipment and recruiting studio musicians in Ann Arbor resulted in a return to Chicago for the spring. 57
The final broadcast of Music Makers occurred April 24, 1939, after which NBC cancelled the program. 58 Several factors likely contributed to this decision, including loss of sponsorship by the American Book Company due to lackluster sales of Fun in Music and the desire of NBC to devote the airtime to more lucrative programming. 59 Scheduling lessons during the lunch period for many schools likely also resulted in a decline in participation. In addition, James C. Petrillo, president of the Chicago Federation of Musicians, raised concerns that teaching music over the radio would affect the employment of professional musicians. 60 Reduced work for members due to the Depression, the use of recorded music on radio, and the advent of sound in motion pictures probably exacerbated Petrillo’s position. 61 In 1939, he attempted to end the program by insisting that a school chorus must sing for half of the thirty-minute broadcast each week. 62 Maddy and his colleagues in the Extension Division considered several options that would allow the program to continue. However, none of these arrangements proved feasible. 63
WUOM–Ann Arbor (1950–1951)
Maddy understood that the commercialization of radio would continue to push educational programming off the air and became an advocate for nonprofit stations using new frequency modulation (FM) technology. 64 The UofM established WUOM in 1948 and, for the first time, could transmit programs directly from Ann Arbor without the expense associated with WJR broadcasts. 65 Although officials in the Extension Division intended their K–12 programming for local schools in Washtenaw County, WUOM reached listeners throughout the region. 66
The new facilities allowed Maddy to resume instrumental instruction over the radio. He premiered a series of lessons for orchestral strings on Tuesday, February 7, 1950, at 2:30 p.m. 67 The Extension Division supplied several local schools with an FM receiver and a violin, which allowed the teacher to learn along with the students. 68 The program expanded during the 1950–1951 academic year. Lessons for pupils who began the previous semester ran from October through the spring and met from 2:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Tuesdays. The series for beginners started in February 1951 and aired on Thursdays at the same hour. Orion Dailly, music director at WUOM, and Elizabeth Green, a faculty member at the UofM, assisted Maddy with the broadcasts. 69 String lessons moved to Fridays at 2:15 p.m. in the fall of 1951. By this point, interest had waned, as indicated by a decline in book requests by local schools. 70 The program ended sometime during the 1951–1952 academic year. 71
Pedagogy
Teachers providing lessons over the radio in the early twentieth century had no knowledge of their students’ backgrounds and no interaction or immediate feedback to determine if their instruction was effective. 72 Maddy understood these limitations and established philosophical principles, pedagogical methods, and didactic materials specific to teaching instrumental music via radio. For example, he developed the band course by teaching the lessons to his ten-year-old daughter, Jean. Each occupied a different room so that Maddy could see but not hear his student. Jean signaled once she had mastered a particular skill or concept, indicating that her father could move ahead. 73
Philosophy
The philosophy for radio instruction adopted by Maddy focused on exploration and the development of basic skills rather than the acquisition of advanced musicianship. According to Maddy, the purpose of teaching instrumental music over the radio was to “stimulate interest and discover talent,” especially among “half-hearted pupil[s with] a mild interest in music . . . who might consider trying a lesson or two if it cost nothing[.]” He continued, stating that “My job . . . is to teach music, not technique. I am not greatly concerned as to whether my radio pupils know the pitch names of the notes; whether they know a sharp from a flat; whether they read music or not; or even whether they use the right fingering—so long as they learn to play tunes they like, well enough so they will enjoy playing and that their parents and friends will enjoy hearing them play.” 74
Maddy doubted that radio could “ever supplant the personal touch of the classroom teacher.” However, he believed that “in the beginning stages [italics original] radio instruction may be more fruitful than personal instruction.” 75 Maddy claimed that radio pupils developed better tone than students taught in the classroom due to the constant model provided by the studio ensemble and the need for students to play softly enough to hear the radio. 76 Nonetheless, he reassured teachers concerned that radio would make their jobs obsolete, saying, “many music teachers have been engaged to carry on music classes begun by radio but in no instance has a music teacher been dropped because of the availability of radio lessons.” 77
Preparation
Maddy enlisted the help of the State Department of Education, who “sent letters to all school superintendents in Michigan announcing the program, cautioning against haphazard participation, and urging them to place a teacher (not necessarily a music teacher) in charge of each class to see that the students received the instruction without interruption.” 78 In some cases, a school janitor, town minister, or other adult supervised the class. 79 Maddy claimed that the best supervisors where those who knew nothing of playing instruments and followed his instructions explicitly. Adults with previous experience sometimes attempted to “[supplement] radio lessons with their own instructions, which always consisted of rhythmic exercises and other problems and only served to distract attention for the fundamental things–tone quality and musical expression.” 80 Classes with more than twenty pupils were encouraged to divide into two groups so that everyone could hear the radio while they played along. 81
School personnel had to recruit students, arrange for use of a radio in the classroom, and request lesson materials through either the UofM or NBC in Chicago, depending on where the program originated. Maddy produced and mailed the free lesson books partially at his own expense the first two years. 82 In subsequent seasons, students paid a nominal fee for these materials. 83
Maddy asked that students meet several days prior to the first lesson to receive books and review instructions for assembling and maintaining instruments and for producing a sound because he did not explain these skills during the broadcasts. He also recommended that a local musician attend the meeting to ascertain the playability of students’ instruments. Supervisors were asked to gather their class fifteen minutes prior to the first lesson to assess students’ progress in producing the tuning note and to enlist peer tutoring for those unable to do so. Further recommendations included tuning and warming up the class five minutes before each subsequent broadcast and scheduling a group rehearsal once a week between lessons. 84 Maddy invited mothers to listen at home so they could supervise practice and remind children of instructions provided during the program. 85
Lesson Procedures
Instructional procedures involved utilizing two adjoining soundproof studios separated by a glass partition (see Appendix A, Figures S2 and S3 in the supplemental document included with the online version of this article). Maddy taught from one studio while a group of schoolchildren received instruction in the adjoining room. These students faced away from the window and followed instructions heard over a speaker placed in front. Maddy would adjust the pace of the lesson and provide corrections to the radio audience based on what he witnessed through the partition and signals given by an assistant supervising the children. 86 He stated that, “Since the faults of those in the studio were duplicated by nearly all of my radio pupils, such comments as: ‘Hold your violin higher,’ or ‘You are not using enough bow,’ brought amazing letters asking how I could tell what they were doing.” 87
Participants in the Ann Arbor studio usually consisted of intact radio classes or individuals from schools in the region. 88 These visitors often performed one or two selections together (see Appendix B, Example 1 in the supplemental document included with the online version of this article), played solos, participated in interviews, and modeled correct and incorrect playing for the radio audience. Maddy stated that “sometimes, a pupil is called to the microphone because he is making a common error which can best be corrected among the unseen pupils by explaining and working with a pupil at the microphone.” 89 Radio students also participated in lessons broadcast from Chicago. However, they only occasionally provided demonstrations due to the requirement of the musician’s union to pay a standby professional for each student featured on the air. 90
A demonstration group consisting of university students in Ann Arbor (see Appendix A, Figure S4 in the supplemental document included with the online version of this article) and professional musicians when broadcasting from Chicago assisted with instruction. 91 The typical band at the WMAQ studios in Chicago during the 1936–1937 season included one flute, two clarinets, two trumpets, two horns, two trombones, one tuba, snare drum, and bass drum. 92 String lessons utilized a string quintet, sometimes reinforced with piano. 93 Maddy was meticulous in preparing musicians in these ensembles. Professionals rehearsed thirty minutes for each program, and students practiced for two hours prior to air. 94
Pedagogy of the radio lessons followed the song method as first applied to instrumental music in the UT. 95 Each radio lesson began with students matching tuning pitches provided by the studio ensemble. Next, the demonstration group played the first tune of the lesson while students fingered each note and/or hummed or sang along on solfège syllables. The studio ensemble then demonstrated the notes of the song as needed, holding each tone long enough to permit pupils to match the pitch on their instruments. Studio musicians continued by modeling each segment of the melody several times and in sequence until students had learned the entire tune. Finally, the demonstration group added harmonized accompaniment to give radio pupils “the thrill of playing in a professional ensemble” (see Appendix B, Example 2 in the supplemental document included with the online version of this article). 96 Maddy spoke as little as possible in each lesson, saying that “the test of any class is the participation of the students so that every member of every class is purposefully occupied every minute of every class period.” 97
Radio lessons often included special presentations to add variety, provide rest for beginning players, and increase appeal to the causal listener. At NBC, Maddy often featured the studio band playing a march in the middle of the program and brief solos from the professional musicians. 98 Fun in Music and Music Makers sometimes included singing, visits from NBC radio personalities, special musical arrangements, and skits embedded in instruction. While tuning or learning a new note, members of the studio orchestra not sustaining the pitch would often play an arrangement of a familiar melody as the note in question served as a drone. 99 For string lessons in the early 1950s, Elizabeth Green devoted a few minutes to some aspect of technique, such as bowing, fingering, shifting, or vibrato, and related these skills to pieces students were learning to play. According to Maddy, “Having the problem presented by a different person increases the emphasis and interest.” 100
Didactic Materials
Band
Maddy created special materials designed for radio instruction. The book issued for band lessons in February 1931 contained music and directions for all instruments on pages that teachers could separate and distribute to individual students. This plan avoided the problem of people requesting books without specifying an instrument. 101 Each set contained parts for Db piccolo/flute, C piccolo/flute, oboe/C saxophone, Bb clarinet/cornet/trumpet, Bb saxophone, Eb saxophone/alto horn/mellophone, French horn in F, trombone/baritone, and bassoon/Eb or BBb tuba. Maddy did not include a book for drums, perhaps due to the differences in technique required for percussion versus wind instruments. 102
As with materials utilized in subsequent years, pages for each instrument contained preliminary information on instrument care, playing and hand position, and producing a sound. These explanations, along with diagrams, photographs, and fingering charts, all contributed to student independence throughout the course.
103
Repertoire consisted of the first fifteen melodies from the UT, which included songs in
Books used for radio instruction from fall 1932 to spring 1933 included the fifteen original melodies in unison plus six pieces arranged in three parts, also from the UT. These selections were printed horizontally as single lines that started with the tune and then moved to the first harmony part and then the second. Numbers above the staff indicated where each part began. Students started at a designated number and continued until they had played all three parts (see Appendix A, Figure S5 in the supplemental document included with the online version of this article). The book also contained one quartet, “Now the Day Is Done” from the Willis Instrumental Quartet Repertoire for School and Home Ensemble by Maddy and Giddings. 105
Revised instruction books for fall 1933 consisted of fifty progressive melodies in one to three parts and a handful of technical exercises for individual instruments. Students played in duple, triple, and compound meter with dotted and syncopated rhythms and in keys with up to four flats and two sharps. 106 Although more complex than beginning methods today, Maddy made these tunes accessible through rote teaching and did not expect students to fully decode the notation. 107
The expanded text provided enough material to allow for greater student progress. By 1935, this edition included a book for mallets, snare drum, and bass drum. Maddy did not discuss these instruments during the broadcast but expected pupils to learn by reading instructions in the text and hearing percussion in the demonstration ensemble. 108 Books utilized in subsequent band lessons through the 1936–1937 season of the NBC broadcast (see Appendix A, Figure S6 in the supplemental document included with the online version of this article) consisted of the same material but incorporated titles appropriate to the carrier (e.g., N. B. C. Band Instrument Lessons: A Class Method Designed Especially for Radio Instruction). 109
Orchestral Strings
Instructional materials for string lessons airing on WJR from 1933 to 1937 followed the same basic format as the band books and included texts for violin, viola, cello, and string bass. The book opened with a short narrative on how to get the greatest benefit from the course and instructions on instrument sizing, care, and minor repair. A position drill consisting of six photographs followed. Maddy stated that “by calling the numbers and asking the pupils to ‘match’ the pictures[,] they learned what I consider the most difficult thing in all music teaching—the correct way to hold a violin and bow” (see Appendix B, Example 3 in the supplemental document included with the online version of this article). Instructions for tuning preceded the musical material. The book contained fifty-four numbers in keys of up to three sharps and four flats. Several of the melodies included two- or three-part harmony and sometimes involved shifting of the left hand. Maddy did not explain positions in the book or the broadcast. He simply expected students to find the correct placement using aural skills and annotations embedded in the notation that indicated the appropriate string and finger. Arrows below the staff specified the direction of the shift (see Appendix A, Figure S7 in the supplemental document included with the online version of this article). 110
Maddy correlated materials for his band, strings, and singing lessons to encourage group rehearsals at school or in students’ homes between broadcasts. The Golden Book of Favorite Songs, used in the singing classes, served as an accompaniment for many of the tunes in the band and string books. In addition, twenty-five pieces appearing in the same concert key for all instruments allowed winds, strings, percussion, and singers to perform together. 111
String lessons in 1950 to 1951 utilized Maddy’s Symphonic String Course, which he designed for radio instruction and published in 1948. Students learning by radio completed about half of the 100 familiar melodies and orchestral themes contained in the book and learned to play in first, third, and fifth positions. As with previous methods, Maddy avoided scales and other nonmelodic exercises. Teachers and students could purchase long playing (LP) records to supplement radio instruction at school or at home. These recordings featured a professional string sextet playing harmonic and contrapuntal accompaniment for each number in the book. 112
Fun in Music
Maddy and T. P. Giddings based their approach to Fun in Music, published in 1937, on an experiment by Gidding in which he asked children to bring any instrument to school and try to play along with the singing classes. Students received no instruction and simply found the correct pitches through experimentation and by matching the singers. During a visit to Minneapolis in 1934, Maddy observed that seventy-two out of eighty pupils had brought instruments and were learning to play through this approach. 113
The authors of Fun in Music intended for students to learn through the book alone without the aid of a teacher. The text contained preliminary information on instrument maintenance; finding do (tonic) in relation to the key signature, posture, hand position, breathing, and embouchure for wind instruments; and producing initial sounds. Numerous photographs and illustrations supported the directions. 114 Maddy’s daughter, Jean, contributed the cover art and several humorous cartoons that illustrated what not to do in terms of hand and instrument position. 115 The piano book provided both beginning instruction and melodic accompaniment. 116 In total, the method included twenty-five books covering forty-two instruments. 117
Material for Fun in Music consisted of original tunes and familiar melodies. All exercises included lyrics written by Giddings intended to remind players of proper technique and to allow students without an instrument to participate (see Appendix A, Figure S8 in the supplemental document included with the online version of this article). A promotional brochure explained the role of the singers: “The teaching procedure . . . starts with the class singing the song several times until all the pupils know the tune. Then the pupils with instruments play the tune while the rest of the class sing it. The singers keep the tune going until the players learn to play it well enough to play it alone.” 118 Although designed for radio instruction, the American Book Company also marketed the text for instrumental classes in schools and individuals learning at home. 119
Fun in Music contained forty songs in
Maddy taught transposition from the beginning to allow all students to play in a comfortable key. For example, pupils might learn a song in Bb major as written and then transpose to C or A major, which is more idiomatic for beginning strings. The book provided the first measure or two of the melody in the new key and then expected students to play the rest by ear, “finding the fingerings as you go.” By the end of the course, students had played within the range of two octaves including transpositions. 121 Like the Radio Course for Band Instruments used previously, parts for snare and bass drum appeared in the same text as melodic percussion but received no explanation in the broadcast. 122
Assessment
Various methods of assessment were important for determining the effectiveness of Maddy’s radio instruction. Lesson books in 1931 contained four postcard questionnaires (i.e., “criticism cards”) for students—or a teacher or parent—to return after each broadcast that asked if the pace was appropriate, what they liked about the broadcasts, how the course might be improved, and if the lessons should continue. Maddy also inquired about the number of students receiving instruction and on what instruments. 123
Maddy anticipated teaching three songs per lesson. However, feedback from the first broadcast in 1931 indicated that 98 percent of students could progress more rapidly than anticipated. “After the second lesson many students wrote that they could play all of the 15 tunes. . . . After the third lesson practically all of the students reported that they could play all of the pieces.” Therefore, he taught several new songs and harmony parts to existing melodies by rote and added additional material to books published for subsequent series. 124
In addition to correspondence with students and teachers, Maddy visited radio classes throughout Michigan and, eventually, Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois, to monitor progress. Each half-hour stop involved teaching a lesson for about twenty minutes and spending the remaining time talking with the adult supervising the class. He announced his schedule over the air and traveled to as many as ten schools per day beginning early in the morning and sometimes ending late in the evening. 125 Maddy said, “I learn something from every class I visit, and in this way I believe I am improving my teaching technique week by week. . . . My radio pupils are teaching me to keep my mouth shut and let them play throughout the entire lesson period.” 126
A more structured assessment of instrumental instruction by radio occurred at The Ohio State University in 1939. The experiment involved two classes at a school for underserved children in Columbus, Ohio. The experimental group learned by radio using Fun in Music with a non-music teacher in charge while the control group received face-to-face instruction from an instrumental instructor using a different method book. At the end of ten weeks, the radio class had nearly doubled in size, and every pupil could independently play tunes “fairly correctly.” However, the class taught in person had dwindled by half, and only three students “could attempt to play a tune.” 127 Although lacking rigor by modern standards, this research supported Maddy’s claims as to the efficacy of learning to play an instrument by radio.
Conclusions and Implications
Joseph Maddy’s radio lessons represent one of the first attempts at teaching instrumental music through distance education. 128 He used emerging technology to provide accessible and affordable instruction despite economic conditions of the Great Depression experienced in the United States between 1929 and 1939. 129 Maddy’s desire to teach instruments rather than listening lessons on the radio likely stemmed, in part, from his belief that all students should learn to “hear, enjoy, and make music [emphasis original].” He further stated that “when this is accomplished there will be no difficulty in filling the concert halls with enthusiastic supporters of music in its highest forms.” To him, the ability to make music was a key component in music appreciation in addition to a healthy outlet for young people. 130
The opportunity for students to begin learning instrumental music by radio served as one catalyst for the development of school bands and orchestras in the United States and Canada. In Clayton, Michigan (pop. 372), for example, the superintendent supervised sixty-five students in band and string radio classes in 1932. He enrolled in a summer course in music during the summer of 1933 and assumed leadership of the school’s forty-five-piece band and a thirty-five-piece orchestra in the fall. 131 At Stone School near Ann Arbor, Michigan, the classroom teacher learned to play violin and cello to support the twenty-nine students participating in string lessons over WUOM in 1950–1951. By the end of the fall 1951 semester, she was directing a string orchestra of thirty-six players. 132
Although intended for students attending school in rural Michigan, people of all ages in various communities throughout the Midwest and eventually the nation benefited from Maddy’s broadcasts. 133 According to Maddy, many “self-conscious” adults “welcomed the radio course because they could learn to play in the privacy of their own homes, without telling their neighbors.” 134 Dorothy Ziegler (1922–1972) of Muscatine, Iowa, began learning trombone at age thirteen through lessons over WMAQ in Chicago. She eventually became a pioneer among female brass musicians and served as principal trombone of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra from 1944 to 1958. 135
Development of Distance Learning in Music
Procedures that Maddy developed in the 1930s continued to shape best practices for teaching music over the radio. One MENC publication in 1955, for example, recommended that “pupil participation should be included in the broadcasts” and that “the best method of telling whether or not a lesson does what is intended is to visit classrooms during reception of the lesson.” The author also stated that “Questionnaires to teachers will bring criticisms and suggestions as to materials, procedures, and vocabulary.” 136
FM radio stations operated by universities and local school districts offered educational programming into the 1970s. However, television eventually became the dominant medium for broadcasting into the classroom. Data from the National Center for School and College Television in 1966, for example, indicated that fifty-five out of seventy-five educational television stations aired 138 music telecourses, thirty-five of which broadcast from more than one station. 137
By the 1990s, fiber optic technology allowed interaction between instructors and students through a closed-circuit television system. 138 Today, the World Wide Web provides synchronous, asynchronous, and blended online distance learning for PK–12 and adult students on a variety of topics, including music. People of all ages can take applied instruction on virtually any instrument via this medium. 139 Parents can access general music activities targeted to age and ability level. PK–12 teachers can bring guest artists or composers into their classrooms or facilitate interaction between students and educators at multiple institutions. 140
Modern Implications
Instrumental lessons via radio increased access for children and adults without opportunities or resources for in-person instruction, especially in rural communities and among underserved populations. 141 Teaching via radio or the Internet today might be one way of providing instruction for PK–12 students in remote regions and in small schools without the ability to employ a music specialist. 142 In following Maddy’s example, PK–12 and private instructors could also use this technology to (a) initiate beginning instruction anytime during the year and (b) provide periodic lessons during summers or when circumstances prevent face-to-face instruction, such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Although students could study wind and orchestral string instruments, they might also value learning to play guitar, ukulele, or other instruments that are more affordable, easier to maintain, and conducive to vernacular music making alone or in social groups.
Pedagogy and materials created by Maddy for radio involved rote instruction, familiar tunes, and a great deal of modeling. The demonstration ensemble provided students with a concept of characteristic sound, a basis for producing accurate pitch and rhythm, and accompaniment that simulated the experience of playing in a group setting. Maddy expected students to take responsibility for their own learning by utilizing the instructions, fingering charts, and photographs provided in the books for teaching instrument care and various executive skills. He also relied on class supervisors at school and mothers at home to encourage practice between lessons and, in the 1950s, provided LP records to facilitate this process. 143 As per practices established by Maddy, instrumental directors teaching remotely today might consider (a) avoiding scales and exercises in favor of familiar and engaging music, (b) focusing on enjoyment and progress rather than preparation for performance, and (c) recording lessons for reference in home practice. They might also (d) incorporate accompaniment tracks and/or other exemplary recordings during the lesson and for individual use and (e) foster partnerships with guardians though regular communication of lesson goals and assignments.
Maddy planned instruction specifically for radio rather than adapting methods from the classroom. However—as with other forms of effective distance education in music—his pedagogy involved direct and indirect human interactions at every stage of the process. 144 For example, Maddy developed his methods by teaching his daughter, Jean, paced instruction by watching students live in the studio, and assessed progress by visiting radio classes throughout the region. He also regularly requested feedback from students and adults involved in the lessons. 145 All these interactions shaped the pacing, content, and philosophical approach of Maddy’s teaching throughout the history of the broadcasts. 146 Educators creating online instruction today should include similar interactions when planning pedagogy and assessing effectiveness. Knowing how these programs are developed also might help teachers select materials for distance learning.
Method book authors might consider creating materials for band, orchestra, and popular music instruments that include components designed specifically for online learning. In addition to illustrations, instructions, and other features found in many methods, publishers could create lesson videos for students to use throughout the book. Like Maddy’s radio lessons, these videos could include a demonstration ensemble and sequential instructions for students to follow during individual practice sessions. Video lessons could either supplement online or in-person instruction or provide a teacher and materials for students who otherwise would not have access. Recordings and scripts of Maddy’s lessons on radio might serve as a model for creating interactive lesson videos today. 147
As professor of radio music instruction in the Extension Division at the University of Michigan, Maddy demonstrated radio pedagogy at professional conferences, including regional (1933) and national (1934, 1936) meetings of MENC and at the Annual Institute on Education by Radio (1937). 148 He also offered methods classes for music education students on teaching through this medium. 149 Preservice and in-service teacher education today should include preparation for teaching online and maximizing the potential of current technology to supplement face-to-face instruction. Preservice courses, for example, could include field experiences in which candidates teach individuals or small groups of students synchronously online or through video lessons created for use asynchronously.
Future Research
Future research should continue to examine radio instruction and other distance learning modalities for teaching music, past and present. 150 Studies focused especially on engaging learners in music-making through synchronous and asynchronous medias will help establish best practices in this field. Historians could study the use of radio for teaching piano in the late 1920s and early 1930s as well as programs such as The N.B.C. Home Symphony that involved listener participation in vocal or instrumental performance. 151 Descriptive research should continue to examine remote learning today from the perspectives of teachers, students, parents, and administrators. 152 All of these studies will help guide the profession in integrating distance education practices at all levels of instruction.
Supplemental Material
sj-docx-1-jrm-10.1177_00224294231164776 – Supplemental material for Joseph E. Maddy’s Instrumental Music Lessons via Radio
Supplemental material, sj-docx-1-jrm-10.1177_00224294231164776 for Joseph E. Maddy’s Instrumental Music Lessons via Radio by Phillip M. Hash in Journal of Research in Music Education
Supplemental Material
sj-docx-2-jrm-10.1177_00224294231164776 – Supplemental material for Joseph E. Maddy’s Instrumental Music Lessons via Radio
Supplemental material, sj-docx-2-jrm-10.1177_00224294231164776 for Joseph E. Maddy’s Instrumental Music Lessons via Radio by Phillip M. Hash in Journal of Research in Music Education
Supplemental Material
sj-docx-3-jrm-10.1177_00224294231164776 – Supplemental material for Joseph E. Maddy’s Instrumental Music Lessons via Radio
Supplemental material, sj-docx-3-jrm-10.1177_00224294231164776 for Joseph E. Maddy’s Instrumental Music Lessons via Radio by Phillip M. Hash in Journal of Research in Music Education
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author declared the following potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article:
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article:This work was supported by a research grant from Illinois State University
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Notes
Author Biography
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